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Looking to move to Alpharetta Need residents help

What's up fellow bimmer freaks!
I'm moving my family down to the Alpharetta from NJ.
Yes , the 87 325 249,000miles is gonna make the trek also. I have faith in her making it. Wife ain't so sure.
Question is-
People up here say the traffic is horrible down there in and around Atlanta. This is a bold statement coming from the gridlock capital of the US. New Jersey.
Approx how long would it take to travel by car form Alpharetta on
Take I-285 West/South to I-20 West.
Take I-20 West to Exit #49.
Turn left (south) on Fulton Industrial Blvd.
My new job will be in this area.
Hopefully someone familiar with the Atlanta drive times can help.
Thanks
Dean
Travel time would be 8am and 5:30 pm

Was there recently.Traffic was terrible- or worse

Re: Looking to move to Alpharetta Need residents help

Congratulations on the great move. Owned by Coke, Delta, Ted Turner, Waffle House and Sweet Tea. There is one bad thing about A-Town (my town) though, and that is the traffic. Especially where you will be living. As is standard in Atlanta, no one works on the half of the city where they live, so thus less than a 1/2 hour is considered an "easy" drive. The absolute worst places are Ga400, I-85 and 75 north of the perimeter, especially on the way home between 4:30-6:30pm. Alpharetta is a great place to live and everyone knows it, as evident on GA400 much of the time. I would think your drive would be 30min non peak time, but those times are kind of rare. Expect an hour or more to be a common occurance, and we won't talk about the bad times. Anyway, good luck, you will love Atlanta and hate the traffic.

Avoid Alpharetta if you can help it..

Let me give u the run down on this once great town called Atlanta.

Housing: The majority of the homes built from 1990's-present are done in the form of PUD's. They're built by production builders whose only concern is getting you into the house as quickly and cheaply as possible. For example, almost all of the sub-flooring in these homes consists of orientated strand (aka, high tech particle board) which will eventually soften (3+yrs) and cause your floors to squeak. Finishing work is for the most part sub-par (non square rooms, door jams, windows, etc etc). If you want plywood sub-flooring and low buidling tolarences look at spending atleast $400k (depending on where you live).

The outer northern suburbs create horrible traffic. People live there because #1 it's cheaper, #2 they get a house with a yard, #3 similiar demographics. Many high tech companies opened and consequently closed shop in Alpharetta. There is a nice mall in Alpharetta, but there are nice malls in the Dunwoody area, and in Buckhead.

My suggestion: Look at living in the Vinings(it's where I live) or Dunwoody/Sandy Springs area.

Vinings : It will be much closer to your work, you'll have cheaper property taxes. The housing will be as or more expensive than Alpharetta. You'll be closer to downtown if you like sports (Ex, 25 mins from my house to my seat in the Ga Dome). Where is Vinings? It begins on the NW side of Atlanta where I285 and I75 meet, extending south along I-285 and then down to the Chatt River. The south side of Vinings proper is Atlanta rd.

Sandy Springs/Dunwoody: This area is south of Alpharetta and in the area where I-284/Ga 400 intersect. You can find new to older homes in this area.

Chamblee/North Buckhead area: Many builders are tearing down old homes and building very nice ($500k+) homes in these older neighborhoods.

Atlanta drivers spend more time in their cars than anywhere else in the US. Weigh your quality of life carefully. Is 3hrs in your car every day worth it? Is arriving home every night strung/stressed out because of traffic worth the slightly larger house and slightly larger yard? Remember, in the end the only thing you kids will have cared about is whether or not you were home.

LIVE WHERE YOU WORK...

Every year it takes me 10 to 15 minutes longer to get home. I live in Alpharetta. I worked downtown 2 years ago..it took me an hour to get down (if I left at 6.30 am) and an hour and half to get home.(leaving at 5). If I still worked downtown, I would assume it would take me two hours to get home. If I left the house after 6.30am, I would never get there. (YES, IT IS THAT BAD). Do not even think of travelling on Georgia 400 going anywhere after 7am in the morning, or 4.45 in the afternoon. 285 is pretty bad at those times as well. Alpharetta traffic is impossible. On the weekends it takes me about 15 minutes to go to the end of my block! They are building like crazy, but no new roads. I would try to find something near where you are going to work. Sandy Springs, Roswell and Vinings are great..but you are probably looking at a fixer upper...new is very expensive. By the way, forget public transportation unless you are going a few stops. Too slow and unreliable... I am looking to move. Good luck!

Re: Looking to move to Alpharetta Need residents help

I don't live in Atlanta but spend about two weeks there each month. I agree with the other postings in answer to your question - too long to drive each day because of the heavy traffic.

You may want to seriously consider Sandy Springs, which would cut your commuting time considerably. It's a very nice part of Atlanta, close to GA 400, I-285, I-75 and I-85, as well as close to Buckhead and Mid-Town, where you will find most of the entertainment venues, nice restaurants, and shopping places.
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I live in Henry county and is great as far as

traffic goes I used to take the west wall up to Marrieta in about 30 min. My buddy used to drive from Eagles landing to an area near where your new work is in about the same amount of time. I am am 30 min to downtown and we do not have the traffic of Alpharetta. There is a new area called Heron Bay (nice course) which is a little further down than Eagles. You can buy a nice home in Lake Spivey as well.
Here are a few examples. Traffic just really sucks in ATL.
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Re: Looking to move to Alpharetta Need residents help

I live just outside of Alpharetta (Cherokee) and commute to Roswell through part of Alpharetta. You will want to know that the commute times you'll experience will vary significantly depending on the whether school is in. During the school year, you'll be fighting every soccer-mom-van north of Atlanta, and just getting to the 400 (or 75) will take nearer an hour. Expect this commute to be very long, probably longer than one and a half hours on a regular basis. Not a commute I'd recommend to anyone, though Alpharetta is a nice area.

A better bet might be to look for a home outside the perimeter (285) closer to the 20, there are some nice areas down there, though they may not be appreciating as quickly as Alpharetta. To make up for that, look inside the perimeter - though homes in this area will carry a premium.